You are here

City honors local longtime volunteer

Feb. 23 was a special day in more ways than one for Lebanon resident Kenneth Hughes.

Hughes celebrated his 86th birthday and was also honored by the City of Lebanon with a proclamation declaring Feb. 23, 2014 Kenneth Walker Hughes Day.

Patricia Lowe, who knows Hughes, said she got the idea to talk to Mayor Philip Craighead and his assistant, Debbie Jessen, about getting a proclamation for Hughes.

“He’s always wanting to help people, and I thought it would be nice to do something for him,” Lowe said.

Part of the proclamation reads, “In the course of an ordinary day, you will find a true southern gentleman quietly and consistently making a difference in our community.”

The entire proclamation was read in front of the congregation at Hughes’ church, First Baptist Church, in Lebanon on Sunday. Hughes has been a member there for 82 years. Lowe said Hughes was “just blown out of the water.”

Another paragraph in the resolution reads “Tennessee, the Volunteer State, has Ken Hughes as a model of true volunteerism. You will find this dedicated caregiver delivering home bound meals, visiting the sick and shut-in, and spending quality time with his family and many friends.”

Lowe said you can often find Hughes at the Lebanon Senior Citizens Center, and he is a member of the Bert Coble Singers.

He enjoys traveling and has visited 48 states as well as spent time overseas. He is also a World War II veteran, having served in Italy from 1946-48 as a member of the U.S. Army.

“He said he’d never had anybody do anything like that for him before,” said Lowe.